What should I do? I wondered.
My answer? I’ll tell them.
To the process is more important than the result. I started researching slis because I was interested in them and because I enjoyed the process. I didn’t really care about the result; and besides, I’ve already told them. It’s a bit too late to try and be secretive now.
“It’s alright… The conditions for evolution is, diet.
Different diets, result in different variations.
Green caterpillars, lead to sticky slis.
Poisonous herbs, lead to poison slis.
Slis have, preferences. If you feed them, what they prefer, they’ll eventually evolve.
If you don’t give them, what they prefer, they might still evolve, but slower; alternatively, they might die…” [Ryouma]
“I see, so that’s how slis evolve.” [Elia]
Seeing the young lady nod interestedly, I nodded and continued.
“More food, will make the sli evolve faster.
You can pick from, poisonous herbs, green caterpillars, and the washed bones of monsters…
Those three can give you, poison sli, sticky sli, or acid sli.” [Ryouma]
“Which type did you say I couldn’t pick?” [Elialia]
“Cleaner sli, scavenger sli, heal sli. Their abilities are, the real thing, though.” [Ryouma]
The four mbers of the ducal family did not know of the slis I ntioned except for the heal slis, so they couldn’t help but glance at each other.
“What kind of slis are the cleaner and scavenger slis?” [Elize]
“They have the clean, and deodorize, skills.” [Ryouma]
“Clean and deodorize? I don’t believe I’ve heard of those before.” [Elize]
“I can guess what deodorize does, but what about clean?” [Reinhart]
“…It would be faster, if you saw it, for yourselves… Please wait, a mont.” [Ryouma]
I left the guests for a mont and went to the kitchen. There I took a cloth and dipped it in rabbit blood. I took that cloth back with along with one cleaner sli.
“Sorry to keep, you waiting… This is a cleaner, sli. Please, look.” [Ryouma]
“A blood-stained cloth? What are you going to do with that?” [Elize]
“This.” [Ryouma]
I ordered the sli ntally.
As soon as I did, it took the cloth in my hands and took it into its body.
The cloth spun around the nucleus of the sli.
I’ve seen this scene countless tis, but no matter how many tis I see it, I can’t help but be reminded of a washing machine.
10 seconds later.
The sli stretched out a part of its body and handed the cloth to . I spread that cloth open for the others to see. When the four mbers of the duke’s household saw it, they looked at it with inquisitive eyes. The butler and the two maids in particular where quite taken.
“The blood is gone, huh. The color’s changed too. Was it digested?” [Reinhart]
“It was sucked by the sli, right? Is that it?” [Elize]
“No, madam. That’s not all.” [Maid]
“Arone?”
The one who answered their questions was one of the maids, a middle-aged woman by the na of Arone.
“Ryouma-sama, I believe that sli has the ability to eat ‘filth’. Am I understanding this correctly?” [Arone]
“It is as you, say.” [Ryouma]
“What does that an?” [Reinhart]
“That cloth wasn’t just filthy with blood. There were other substances mixed in. Its current color is its original color.”
When you don’t wash dirty things, the filth piles up, until eventually, its no longer possible to easily remove them. In so cases, the original color is lost forever.
So, in other words, the ‘clean’ skill is a skill that can clean even the filthiest things! Am I correct?” [Arone]
“You are… However, it’s not just, non-living things.” [Ryouma]
I ntally ordered my sli, and in the next mont, it took my hand and the cloth into its body.
“Wha!?” [Elize]
“Don’t worry.” [Ryouma]
Slis would normally digest anything they put inside their bodies, so it was understandable why the mbers of the duke’s household cried out when they saw my hand enter the sli. In fact, it wasn’t just them. Every person in the room made a stiff face when they saw my hand enter the sli.
Five seconds later, I took out my hand.
“Are you ok?” [Reinhart]
“The cleaner sli, only digests filth… They won’t digest human, or animal at, unless ordered to.” [Ryouma]
“Who would’ve thought there would be a sli like that?” [Reinhart]
“Please don’t do that again. It’s bad for the heart.” [Elize]
“My apologies… I’ve already gotten used to it, and… I really didn’t want to touch, this cloth if possible.” [Ryouma]
“Well, it certainly wasn’t very clean awhile ago.” [Elize]
“It used to be a goblin’s loin cloth, after all.” [Ryouma]
Everyone’s face twitched when I said that, but the maids beca even more interested.
Apparently, that was because a goblin’s loincloth was considered to be the filthiest thing in this world.
“With this sli no matter how dirty or how disgusting sothing is you can make it as good as new… Moreover, you normally can’t, take a bath while traveling, right?” [Ryouma]
“Yes, at most I can just wipe myself. This was my first trip, actually. It feels so wrong not being able to take a bath at least once a day.” [Elialia]
“Rest assured then, with this sli… All your problems can, be solved.” [Ryouma]
After I said that, the young lady of the duke’s household looked at with lasers coming out of her eyes. Eek! I thought. This is really scary! For various reasons!
To make things worse, the madam and her 2 maids’ eyes also magnified.
“Because, this sli, can eat filth, bad odor, all the dirty things.” [Ryouma]
“That’s the one! I want that sli! Please help get a cleaner sli!” [Elialia]
…Oops. Didn’t I just say she couldn’t pick this? Why oh why did I pitch it to her then? Not to ntion this was the worst of them all! Ahh, damn it! I lose myself too easily when it cos to slis… At the very least, I should have pitched the scavenger instead!
“This is no goo-” [Ryouma]
“How could you say that after showing such a wonderful thing? How cruel!” [Elialia]
“Ryouma-sama, I am a maid of the Jamil Household from a family who’s served for generations. I too have studied the basics of monster taming. If it’s no trouble, may I also know the thods of acquiring a cleaner sli?” [Arone]
“I’d like to know too~” [Elize]
The won seed to go mad after being pitched such a wonderful sli. Their zeal was so great that the n actually faltered; the guards too…
“Ryouma-kun, please don’t excite the won any more than this.” [Camil]
“The thod is, hard to say to won…” [Ryouma]
“You can’t teach won?” [Camil]
“I don’t mind teaching, it’s just hard, to say.” [ryouma]
“They want to know, though.” [Camil]
Camil-san decided to help out by leading most of the n and I to a corner of the room.
“…I get you.” [Reinhart]
“Who would’ve thought it would be sothing like that.” [Camil]
“That’s certainly not sothing you can say to a woman.” [Zeff]
“I think not even other won could easily say it.” [Jill]
“Well, I’m sure it’ll sort itself out.” [Hyuzu]
Hyuzu-san, however, did not share our sentints. He turned around without a care for the world, and—
“Ojousama! Madam! Arone! I know the thod!” [Hyuzu]
—he proclaid it with a huge smile on his face.
What is he doing!? Does he know of a good way to say it?
“Really!?” [Elialia]
“Yeah! You just have to bathe and use the water as bait!” [Hyuzu]
He said it!! He said it super directly!!
Ah… There goes the slap.
When the won had finally cald down, Reinhart-san explained the details.
If you put used water alongside clean water, most slis would go to the clean one. For so reason, however, so slis would prefer the used water.
Those are the slis that have the inclination to beco cleaner slis.
After picking out the slis with talent, all that’s left is to feed them nothing but water and filth. Sebum and sweat would probably work best.
“I can’t believe such a sli actually exists.” [Elize]
“Sorry.” [Ryouma]
“Umm, it’s not your fault, Ryouma-san.” [Elialia]
“I think it’s… not easy for… won to catch cleaner slis.” [Ryouma]
“Ryouma-san.” [Elialia]
“?” [Ryouma]
“I think… I’ll go with a cleaner sli, after all.” [Elialia]
It seems the young lady hasn’t given up just yet.
“Then which of the guards…” [Ryouma]
“That won’t be necessary. I may only be an apprentice, but I’m going to be a monster tar from here on. I can’t possibly rely on others for this.” [Elialia]
“…You don’t need… to do everything, by yourself…” [Ryouma]
“Even then, I believe I should take the first step on my own.” [Elialia]
“…Your call…” [Ryouma]
“I-I… I’ll do it! Can I have so water please?” [Elialia]
Everyone teared up at the young lady’s speech. Her face was beet red, but she endured it.
She doesn’t really have to go so far.
What’s with the atmosphere, though? It’s almost as if a protagonist has just made a life-changing decision.
Anyway, it felt bad just bringing out so water, so I decided to suggest she use the bath. As a forr Japanese, there are tis when I really want to go for a dip, so I built a bath when I was building my house. Who would’ve thought it’d be used for sothing like this, though?
“There’s, a bath here. Please use it.” [Ryouma]
“You have one? Thank you so much!” [Elialia]
I filled the bath with water magic and heated it with fire magic. When the water was at the right temperature, I called the young lady over. The entire preparation took just a few minutes. Magic’s seriously convenient.
After the young lady ca with the two maids, I went back to where the others were.
“Ouch! Man, they really glared at .” [Hyuzu]
“You deserved it.” [Camil]
“It’s because you didn’t have any of ‘that’.” [Ryouma]
By ‘that’ I was obviously referring to delicacy. I was often told I didn’t have any back on in my previous life, but even I wasn’t as bad as him… Or at least, I think I wasn’t.
I an… When I grew up I had to watch my mouth, or risk getting accused of sexual harassnt. It would have been social suicide if I wasn’t careful.
“Ah, Ryouma-kun. Welco back.” [Elize]
“Umm… Madam, I…” [Ryouma]
“It’s fine, don’t mind it. She’s made her decision and it’s not like you lied, right?” [Elize]
“Of course.” [Ryouma]
“Then that’s that. Besides, I’m happy to see she’s serious about becoming a monster tar. That being said, she could’ve just gotten the cleaner sli by asking one from you, though.” [Elize]
…What did she say?
“What?” [Ryouma]
“I said she could have just gotten one from you. That didn’t cross your mind?” [Elize]
Ha, ha ha ha… Why didn’t I realize sothing so simple. If I’d realized that earlier, we wouldn’t have had to go through all this ss.
Maybe being here in the forest all this ti has finally taken its toll on . It’s been three years since I started living here, after all.
“Good grief…” [Ryouma]
“Oh, well it was interesting in any case. I thought ‘that’s youth for you’, or sothing. Anyway, I’m glad to see my daughter’s resolve.” [Elize]
“Is that so…” [Ryouma]
I feel so tired for so reason…
After the young lady left the bath, she took the water and searched the river for slis. anwhile, I consulted the maids on the fitting of my new clothes.
The young lady’s luck seed to be good, as she ca back early, about the sa ti when I was done talking to the maids.
The young lady brought the sli with her and contracted it in front of everyone.
By then it was already dark, so I suggested for everyone to stay the night. I let them use the bath and cooked supper for them.
The butler and the 2 maids offered to help, but I rejected their offer.
I’m happy for the offer, but the kitchen is too small. We wouldn’t be able to fit with 3 more adults. Not to ntion, everything was built for a kid to use, so if they’re unlucky, they might just end up breaking their hips.
Incidentally, our nu for supper was fried beast at with grated jija, my otherworld version of pork fried with ginger. Reinhart-san seed to enjoy himself, and the others praised too.
It was a weird taste for a Japanese like myself, though. Of course, I’ve gotten used to it by now.
It’s a pity but it can’t be helped since there’s not a lot of rock salt to get from the cliff, and I even have to use alchemy to purify it because it’s a mishmash of various minerals. If it weren’t for alchemy, I probably wouldn’t have stayed here for 3 years.
The ingredients here in the forest are enough to live off of, but they’re not enough to satiate my Japanese stomach.
Well, at least they’re happy.
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